“I love watching this team play. It’s fun. … I have fun watching these boys just play their style and win,” Coach Marlyn Argueta said. “They usually like to go to overtime or make it close or lose in a heartbreaking way. … They just proved they were the best team in the state.”

On Saturday, the Seahawks (14-7) did so quickly. Magnus Schauermann headed in a Cole Mastal corner kick less than two minutes in, then Jeffrey Serrano doubled South River’s lead in the fourth minute when he pounced on a loose ball after another corner.

Towson (12-3-5) halved South River’s advantage when Collin Taylor found the back of the net off a corner in the 10th minute, but Hunter Marsden quickly restored the Seahawks’ two-goal advantage by flicking the ball over a defender, cutting back toward the net and finding the bottom corner.

Sean Ciminelli, who scored in the Seahawks’ semifinal victory against Howard, missed a chance to extend South River’s lead from the penalty spot in the first minute of the second half, but the Seahawks remained in control. Mastal added South River’s fourth goal from a free kick, and Jack Brusse headed in a Marsden delivery on a set piece for the Seahawks’ final tally.

Down a player, Whitman makes it three straight Md. 4A girls’ soccer titles

South River fell to Anne Arundel County foe Severna Park twice, first in a 2-0 regular season defeat and then in a 3-2 overtime loss in the county championship game. But the Seahawks took down the Falcons in a region semifinal — that victory helped South River realize it could compete for the state title, Argueta said.

The Seahawks had to play Severna Park early in the postseason because they retroactively forfeited their first four games, which affected their seeding. South River had fielded an ineligible player, an issue that Argueta attributed to incorrect paperwork.

Still, the Seahawks persisted. After Saturday’s final whistle, they lifted South River’s first state championship trophy since 1987.

“Without that, we probably wouldn’t be here right now,” Schauermann said. “The adversity made us stronger. … Without it, I don’t know — we could have lost a while ago.”